Darcy Byrne-Jones was the hero in the last-gasp win over the Hawks that put Port Adelaide in tonight's front-row spot, ready to use the double chance to full advantage and stay at home all the way to a grand final.
Darcy Byrne-Jones was the hero in the last-gasp win over the Hawks that put Port Adelaide in tonight's front-row spot, ready to use the double chance to full advantage and stay at home all the way to a grand final.
Darcy Byrne-Jones was a game-winner for Port Adelaide a couple of times last season, notably in one of the Showdowns with a bag of three goals, but as happens with young small forwards he did go missing in a number of other games. His obvious quality and the shortened nature of the 2020 season might help him stave off second-year syndrome, but it remains to be seen whether he can be anything more than a roleplayer a la the late career of teammate Robbie Gray, or whether he can lift his scoring floor to something that would interest fantasy coaches.
All the way with DBJ
The half back line at Port was the subject of a lot of speculation going into 2019 but Darcy Byrne-Jones rose above all his teammates to have a true breakout year, albeit he was merely continuing a steadily upward trajectory that began three years earlier. He can now be considered among the leading forward-running backmen in the league, though his rebound 50 rate went down last year as he gets a lot more of his ball zoning up to midfield, as one of the last accelerators in the Port defensive slingshot. Fantasy coaches love upside, and in Byrne-Jones they have a player who has increased his fantasy average substantially across each of his four years. Is there any space left in his ceiling going into season five? Four of his six fantasy tons for the year came in the last eight rounds, though that also included the round 22 fantasy finals disaster when the team got belted and he only had five touches. He should be a popular pick in middle rounds, with a possible reach earlier than that.
Half the way with DBJ
We know what sort of player Darcy Byrne-Jones by now, as he has produced three seasons of much the same sort of game: starting deep, trying to run out of defence with ball in hand when he can, but only accumulating decent scores half the time with the flow of the game often going against him. Byrne-Jones will have to fend off a challenge by old stager Matthew Broadbent for his spot, further muddying the waters. He's the sort of piece you don't want in your squad if you can help it, as his output is too unreliable. It all adds up to a player who maybe shouldn't even be drafted, despite the average.
Not all the way with DBJ
Holding onto the back pocket position he has grasped in 2016, Darcy Byrne-Jones hovers around a replacement-level fantasy average with very high variability, mixing nine scores of 51 or less with six over 80. Fantasy coaches hate players like this. Byrne-Jones is strictly a one-week play off the free agent pool, preferably against bottom six sides as he tends to go better against them.
